Chapter 2

The early light of dawn was just visible around the curtain edges in the lounge. The reflected light off the large screen projection illuminated the figures staring avidly at the screen with a soft blue glow. The occasion had been deemed worthy of setting up the large cinematic screen meaning the whole glittering spectacle filled nearly a whole wall of the generously proportioned room.

Jeff sat back in an aged leather armchair shipped specially from Kansas. The form of it had moulded to his body by the passage of many years although he rarely had time to relax in it now. Across the room Virgil and John, both on vacation from university, book-ended the sofa; a sleek designer affair that manged to combine both style and comfort. Both looked sleepy and a little unfocussed. Virgil had never been a fan of early mornings and it was entirely possible that John hadn't actually made it to bed yet if he had spent the night engrossed in the stars. His youngest son, still a child and growing into his talents, sat on the floor leaning back against the sofa rather than sitting on the chair itself. In Alan's hands was a cup of popcorn chosen especially for the cinematic treat. He sat there in rapt awe, barely blinking as he popped piece after piece of white fluff into his mouth. Jeff nursed his own mug of inky black coffee. The aroma of the beans filling the space around him with a rich warmth.

At last the moment they had been waiting for arrived. Team USA marched into shot; processing around a stadium half a world and many time zones away. Ranks of the chosen few strode across the screen in all their athletic glory. The athletes were bedecked in pristine white trousers and shirts topped with navy blue blazers. Red trim to the lapels completed the patriotic ensemble. The young men and women chosen to represent their country trailed behind the flag bearer, their lines arranged with military precision. Jeff rather thought the effect was spoiled by the individuals walking out of step with each other and waving to the crowd in the surrounding stadium. It jarred with his Air Force history which much preferred the uniformity of troops marching smartly in time.

A squeal broke through his internal criticism of the scene.

"There he is! There he is!"

Alan's voice, still high pitched in its youth, filled the space with an exuberant joy. The cup of popcorn was tilting dangerously towards the floor as the youngest of five spotted his next in line.

The fourth Tracy son crossed the screen and disappeared out of sight in a matter of seconds and Jeff was forced to pause, rewind and replay the footage several times before Alan had got his fill of the sight.

Gordon looked happy. Happier than he had done for weeks. Happy didn't do justice to the beaming, grinning individual with sandy blonde hair slightly tinted by chlorine who strode between his fellow countrymen and women. He seemed to bounce along, riding the waves of the atmosphere that swirled around the stadium.

Jeff had seen little of his second youngest son lately despite technically living in the same house. Both had demanding schedules; one filled with work and business meetings, the other filled with school and pool training. The moment school had finished Gordon had been whisked away to the pre-games training camp, missing both his high school graduation ceremony and the senior prom. The young man on the screen was almost a stranger and definitely an enigma to him.

Jeff's eldest three sons were of a mind-set he could understand. They were studious, clever, indeed highly gifted in their chosen fields. He had been immensely proud when Scott had been accepted to Yale and then followed him down his own career path into the Air Force. The young man was making quite a name for himself in the service if the regular updates sent through by old colleagues were to be believed; he had already been promoted to First Lieutenant and it looked like he would soon be a Captain. Virgil excelled in engineering but also retained a quiet compassion that allowed him to see the world as more than just a set of variables and constants to be manipulated. John had followed him to the stars and Jeff had no doubt that his quietest son could follow him out of Earth's atmosphere and beyond just a theoretical study of space travel if he so desired.

Gordon was evidently gifted too but in a direction he couldn't quite comprehend. Physical ability was a facet he appreciated and even John had submitted to his requirement for regular structured exercise. But a strong body needed to be a vessel for a keen mind and Gordon just hadn't shown any particular leanings towards an academic field.

He was as proud as any father could be that a son of his had reached the Olympics and at such a young age but he still worried for his son's future prospects.

A sigh from the floor broke through his contemplations.

"I wish we could have been there for the opening ceremony."

"Now Alan, we've been through this. Gordon's heats don't start for another week. I've got us tickets to his events and we will be there to see him compete in person but I just cannot spare the time to take you out there for the whole duration of the Games."

"But Virgil could have taken me. Or John." The voice was a petulant whine now.

"Virgil and John might be on summer break but they both still have work to do. The last thing either of them need is to be responsible for you at the biggest international sporting event in the world. Watching sport has never been your thing before. It's normally hard enough to prise you away from those video games you play."

Both Virgil and John looked infinitely relieved that neither of them was expected to be responsible for an excitable young teenager in a foreign country. It was bad enough taking him bowling or to the cinema. Alan seemed to be well and truly gripped by Olympic fever, hence them all watching the live coverage of the opening ceremony at some hideous time of the morning rather than watching a recording at a more socially acceptable hour. It seemed to mean so much to their youngest brother to get the chance to watch out for Gordon live that they hadn't had the heart to refuse. It was just as well Gordon had had his few seconds of glory on screen otherwise Alan would have been beyond devastated not to have seen him.

"But it's the Olympics. And it's Gordon." As if this explained everything.

"And you will get to see Gordon compete in every race he is in when we fly out next week. Even Scott has managed to arrange some leave so he can join us. Gordon will be well supported."

Alan huffed slightly in response but went back to staring at the screen, the popcorn once again being shovelled in as figures from all nations strode across in a seemingly never ending stream of competitors.

Once it became clear that Team USA would not be making another appearance Virgil and John sloped off. Virgil to reclaim his bed, John to find his for the first time that sleep cycle having reverted to a near nocturnal pattern without classes to drag him away from his beloved stars. Both had willingly joined the spectators in the lounge but the time difference left a lot to be desired and both were exhausted after a long and difficult semester. Jeff followed after but for him the destination was to work rather than bed. Alan was soon left to watch the conclusion of the carefully choreographed spectacle alone.

xoxoxox

Virgil padded towards the kitchen, he socks making no sound on the hardwood floor. He could almost forget that there was anyone else in the apartment. He had barely seen his brothers all day and Jeff was still at the office. John had spent much of the day sleeping after grumbling that the city skies really hadn't been worth staying up for. He assumed Alan was engrossing in another gaming session. Part of him wondered if he ought to have a word with their dad; his youngest brother seemed to spend an unhealthy amount of time hooked up to a console.

He paused at Alan's door, taking a moment to take in the view through the crack. Rather than being strapped into a VR headset as expected, Alan was instead sprawled on his bed. A screen was propped up on his knees. The murmured one sided conversation suggested a video call rather than another game. He wasn't normally one to eavesdrop but curiosity overcame Virgil as he wondered who on earth Alan could be talking to. He didn't talk about any particular school friends and beyond Grandma they had no family to speak of. He stayed to one side of the doorway out of sight and listened. If he stood absolutely still he could just about pick up the other voice on the line.

"The stadium looked huge. What was it like? Did you get some photos for me?"

"Yeah, it's massive. Kinda makes be glad I'm not in the track and field events. No photos though, we couldn't take cameras in to the opening ceremony. We didn't even get to see the show afterwards, just lots of waiting around to go in then straight back to the Village after. You probably saw more than I did."

Gordon then. He figured it must already be the next morning for their absent athlete.

"Aww. We saw you, y'know. Who was the cute blonde you were next to?"

Virgil smirked. For all he might bounce like an excited puppy Alan was evidently growing up and the hormones were kicking up.

"Which one? Amber the high jumper or Brad the hockey player?"

"Amber, I'll leave Brad to you. Think you can introduce me when we're over there?"

"No chance. Firstly, she already has a long term boyfriend. And secondly, you're about five years too young for that sort of stuff."

"Hey, I'm not that young. Not that you'd think it the way things go round here. There's something going on and Dad won't tell me about it. Since John and Virgil got back Dad keeps having meetings with them in the study."

"Rather them than me. You know as well as I do the study only means bad news."

"I don't think so. And since when has John ever been chewed out over anything. It's not like he ever missed curfew or turned in a bad report card. I don't know what's going on but this place is full of secrets. They all just treat me as a kid though, like I wouldn't understand."

"Try not to worry about it Al. Why don't you get John to help you finish that sim you were coding?"

"Maybe. He just seems so busy though."

"Look, I've got to go, I've got training soon. I'll try and call same time tomorrow if that works for you."

"Sure."

"Don't forget to eat your vegetables and clean your teeth."

"Yes Mom. Now don't you need to go put some water wings on."

"Cheeky brat. Speak to you tomorrow. Bye."

"Bye Gordo."

Virgil watched as the screen was put to one side, the smile sliding off of Alan's face, before continued his journey to the kitchen to grab a drink. That brief conversation with Gordon was more words than he had heard out of his youngest sibling in one go since he had arrived back home. He had put it down to sullen teenage moods but evidently Alan could be quite chatty when he wanted to.

Alan was clearly missing Gordon. The youngest two had always been close. Despite Gordon technically being closer in age to John than Alan the sibling friendship pairings hadn't worked out that way. Virgil realised how little he knew about the youngest pair beyond Gordon's swimming. Since when had Alan been able to code simulations? And what sort of simulations?

He shrugged it off as a conundrum for another day. They would be flying out to the Olympics in just a few days and he wanted to get a project plan sent off to his supervisor before that happened. The meetings with Jeff, which Alan had evidently picked up on, had changed the direction of his post-grad project and he wanted to get the revisions in before travelling. Bonding time could happen once the work was completed.